The World’s Greatest is Dead - Chapter 238

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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The Heavenly Supreme Has Died – Episode 238
Tap.
Tap, tap.
I lightly tapped the ground with the tip of my foot, testing it. The sensation remained unfamiliar and rigid beneath me.
This was the arena floor. It gets crushed and damaged every day, yet somehow it’s restored so meticulously each time. I couldn’t help but wonder how they managed it.
It wasn’t simply filled with stone, and given how it withstood the impact of martial artists’ clashes, they must be mixing in something else.
The fact that they replaced it with fresh material daily was truly remarkable.
As I continued tapping a few more times, as if trying to discern its composition.
“We will now prepare for the semi-final match of the tournament.”
“….”
At the referee’s words, I straightened my posture.
Right. This wasn’t the time to be examining the ground.
“Shhh.”
I exhaled softly and circulated my energy throughout my body.
Tension rose within me, and warmth began to spread. Heat coursed through every limb.
Beyond my gaze, my opponent came into view.
Thump.
A man with a coarse, massive frame, loosening up while flashing a continuous grin.
The miracle of the Peng Clan—someone with a physique and fierce features that no one would believe belonged to someone my age.
Peng Dojun of the Cheonmu Jiche.
He was looking at me with a smile that sent chills down my spine.
“….”
This is terrifying.
Why exactly is he grinning like that?
‘Sigh.’
Part of me wanted to back out immediately. Fighting someone like him was the problem itself.
No, actually.
‘The fact that I’m standing here at all is what’s strange.’
The semi-final of the Yongbong Tournament.
If anything was strange, it was that I had made it to this stage.
I could hardly believe I was standing in a place like this.
‘It’s truly remarkable.’
How did things come to this?
There was no need to dwell on that.
Glance.
I shifted my gaze slightly toward Yoo Cheon-gil.
‘It’s because of that old man.’
Whether to call it a blessing or a curse.
Curse seemed more fitting. I’d suffered far more because of that ghost of a man.
‘…I’m not particularly pleased about this either.’
Even now, facing off against this strange man, I couldn’t say I was particularly eager.
To be honest, it didn’t sit well with me.
“….”
Recalling that, my thoughts suddenly halted.
A question had surfaced in my mind.
‘Is it true?’
Really?
‘Am I.’
Really not eager about this?
“….”
Normally, I would have said yes without hesitation.
Having to fight a man like that. Of course I’d hate it.
It should have been that way, certainly.
“…Hmm.”
I touched the corner of my mouth with my hand. Then I froze.
‘It’s turned up.’
Subtly. I could feel the corners of my mouth lifted ever so slightly.
‘Madman.’
Was I trying to smile?
A chill ran down my spine.
I deliberately suppressed it and forced my expression back to normal, steeling my gaze.
I was clearly bewitched.
‘That old man has me under his spell.’
Calling it bewitchment felt utterly repulsive, but there was no other explanation.
Enjoying combat? Me?
That couldn’t be. I’d suffered so much struggling to adapt to this violent world after being cast into it.
To think I’d enjoy engaging in such brutal fighting? It was unbelievable.
“Assume your stance.”
*Shing.*
At the Referee’s command, Heuk Taedo and I drew our blade and sword.
‘Enjoying it, my foot.’
I refused to acknowledge it.
I tensed and glanced around the arena. It was the direction I’d looked at before.
In one corner, I gazed at the woman sitting alone, without her father beside her.
The way she hid her mouth behind her fan while her eyes smiled infuriated me.
‘…Sigh.’
I had plenty to say, but I’d hold my tongue for now.
When I see you later, you’re truly finished.
I bit down and refocused.
And.
“Semi-finals of the martial arts tournament. Peng Dojun of the Peng Clan versus Bangseong-yeon of the Cheongwol Sect.”
The referee raised his hand high and shouted.
“Begin.”
Among the spectators, who seemed far more numerous than usual.
The match began.
However.
‘Hmm?’
I narrowed my eyes slightly at the unfolding situation.
Despite the match beginning, Heuk Taedo wasn’t moving at all.
‘What’s this?’
What was he trying to do? Just as I was on guard.
“Do you know something?”
Heuk Taedo spoke to me.
“Know what, exactly…?”
“There are far too many X-Persons in this world.”
“Pardon?”
X-Persons, out of nowhere?
It was an abrupt statement.
“What does that even….”
“Frauds who possess mediocre talent and, oblivious to their station, delude themselves into thinking they’re genuine. I call such men X-Persons.”
“….”
“Vermin unworthy of remembrance, undeserving of even a moment’s attention. I despise such creatures.”
“….”
Heuk Taedo’s expression as he spoke was sincere.
The face of one regarding garbage with genuine loathing and disgust.
“Which is precisely why I crave the genuine.”
Thud-!
The blade he held plunged roughly into the ground.
“Even in the filthiest of muddy fields, those who are genuine shine. How brilliantly that light gleams. I find myself unable to stop watching it.”
“…Light, you say…?”
It must be a metaphor. He surely didn’t mean literal light.
Truly.
‘The geniuses Heuk Taedo sees must all shine with light, figuratively speaking.’
Recalling that, I remembered.
How he called Dang Cheon-il an idiot.
How he spoke the same way upon seeing the Shaman’s Woon-ryong.
Heuk Taedo’s attitude overlapped with those memories.
‘He despises frauds.’
If so, did that mean Dang Cheon-il and Woon-ryong were frauds in Heuk Taedo’s eyes?
‘Yet to me, both are undeniable geniuses.’
Regardless, they were men who had entered the Seventh Sect.
By any measure, they were talented individuals, yet Heuk Taedo did not seem to view them that way.
The problem was.
‘So what does he want from me?’
If I was curious about anything, it was why he was bringing this up to me.
As I pondered this.
“That’s why I find you fascinating.”
Heuk Taedo spoke, looking at me.
“What exactly are you?”
“…What do you mean?”
What do you mean, out of nowhere?
“When I saw Geombong, I thought my eyes would be blinded. I had never seen anything so radiant in my life.”
A radiant light.
The monster among the First Disciples—Geombong.
It was a famous tale that she had utterly defeated Heuk Taedo in the last Yongbong Tournament.
“Was that the heavens themselves? Even if only for a moment, I was swept up in despair.”
His words carried admiration. I could sense how highly Heuk Taedo regarded Geombong.
“I knew I would never see such light again. So I yearned for it—to one day break Geombong.”
Crack.
A fissure formed in the ground where Heuk Taedo had planted his blade. Yet he had been standing still.
“Then, in the midst of that life, I saw you. The Protagonist.”
“…You mean me?”
“Yes.”
Whirrrrr.
A faint sound echoed. I could see Heuk Taedo’s blade vibrating rapidly and subtly.
“I was astonished. I saw a light I thought I would never witness again after Geombong.”
“…”
I furrowed my brow at his words. He saw something like that from me? That couldn’t be right.
“I was afraid.”
Even as I remained bewildered, Heuk Taedo continued.
“Geombong’s light was radiant and beautiful. But your light—it was truly terrifying. I had never seen anything so vast and frightening.”
This madman was afraid? When on earth could that have been…?
‘Ah.’
Mid-thought, it came to me. Could it be.
‘That time?’
The day I first encountered Heuk Taedo.
When I crossed paths with the Peng Clan’s carriage while heading to Hanan.
Heuk Taedo, who had meant to threaten my companions, had been frightened upon seeing me.
More precisely.
‘Not by me.’
I sensed Yoo Cheon-gil.
‘The Cheonmu Jiche perceives even ghosts.’
A being that cannot be seen, yet can be felt.
Heuk Taedo had sensed the soul of Yoo Cheon-gil attached to me and was seized with terror.
‘So that’s it.’
The vast light that Heuk Taedo claimed to have witnessed seemed to refer to exactly that.
‘Not me, but Yoo Cheon-gil.’
He had mistaken the light he felt emanating from me as my own.
Now it made sense.
“That’s why the mystery deepens.”
Crack. Heuk Taedo slowly began to loosen his body.
The match had been going on for a while, yet only now was he warming up.
“The light from back then is still there… but something… something feels off about it.”
“What do you mean?”
“From a distance, it seems bright enough to blind. But up close, it feels like something else entirely.”
“…”
Hearing his words, my expression twisted. This sharp bastard.
‘He’s discerning my pathetic presence hidden beneath Yoo Cheon-gil’s aura, separate from it.’
What Heuk Taedo called subtle must surely be exactly that.
“That’s why I was intrigued. What exactly are you? My instincts have never been wrong. Yet you alone, I could not fathom.”
“So that’s why you wanted to fight me?”
“Precisely. It’s fascinating. A being whose true nature I cannot discern… I simply couldn’t bear it. Of course.”
Heuk Taedo glanced toward a specific location—where Muyong Youngsoon stood.
“That’s not the only reason now.”
“…”
“Anyway.”
Whoosh.
The blade lodged in the ground was drawn free.
“If you can’t understand this or that, then experience it firsthand. Don’t you agree?”
When in doubt, one learns through direct experience. With one’s own body.
A truly crude and simple method, without question.
“If there is one thing I wish for.”
Heuk Taedo slowly took his stance.
I felt the conversation had reached its end.
Seeing that, I adjusted my own stance as well.
“I hope your light is genuine.”
“…”
“Truly, I do.”
Clang—!
With those words, my sword energy soared to meet Heuk Taedo’s blade.
A piercing cry tore through the air—!
At the same moment, brilliant moonlight wrapped around my blade as well.
I tensed, keeping a watchful eye on Heuk Taedo’s movements.
“Let me say this again.”
Heuk Taedo wiped the smile from his face and spoke.
“Don’t let your guard down. I don’t want to be disappointed.”
In that instant.
A tremendous surge erupted—!!
‘What?’
Black energy poured forth from Heuk Taedo’s body.
Black Cloud.
The Peng Clan’s secret technique enveloped my entire being.

* * *
-So that’s it.
-Is that the Peng Clan’s new secret technique they spoke of?
-I can’t see anything at all.
A black veil had formed above the arena. The perfectly rounded barrier made it impossible to see anything inside from the outside.
Unable to discern what was happening within, the audience expressed their frustration.
-This way, there’s nothing to see.
-What on earth is happening in there…?
For those who had come to witness the martial tournament, it was hardly a satisfying technique.
Especially.
‘…Will he be alright?’
For Muyong Youngsoon, it was even worse.
She had come both amused and worried, having set something in motion. But now she could see nothing at all.
‘Hmm.’
Now, a slight regret crept in.
‘Was it too much?’
She had acted out of irritation at his indifferent facade.
Yet guilt and fear coexisted within her.
The guilt was guilt, but what of the fear?
‘…He won’t let it slide once this is over, will he?’
Given his nature, if he had tolerated it this far, he certainly wouldn’t overlook it next time.
The moment this ended, he would seize her and unleash a torrent of scolding.
When he truly grew angry, he was genuinely terrifying.
Knowing this, Muyong Youngsoon swallowed dryly.
“Really, who told you to go that far?”
There was a sense of injustice to it as well.
‘How long will he keep pretending not to notice?’
That person was skilled at concealing themselves.
They were remarkable at hiding their emotions and revealing nothing of their thoughts.
‘Ten years.’
That was how long I had been watching this person.
Whether it had been less or more than that.
Muyong Youngsoon, who had watched Bangseong-yeon all this time.
No—Muyong Youngsoon, who had watched only that man during all those years.
‘To put on so many false pretenses.’
It meant he was someone incapable of honesty.
Hani, others might not know, but Muyong Youngsoon understood.
That was why she couldn’t give up.
His act of denial infuriated her.
Someday, she wanted to strip away that wretched man’s shell.
That was why she had committed to this course of action.
‘…Still.’
Muyong Youngsoon lowered the hand holding her fan and clasped both hands tightly together.
‘…Please, don’t get hurt.’
Even if it was something she had provoked.
She harbored this selfish wish nonetheless.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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